Jabberjay
by Macavroche
Summary: Is Prim as harmless as she seems? Is Madge really on their side? And President Snow has eyes everywhere...


This is a little story I wrote about The Hunger Games. Going to see it next Friday. Super excited! Prim's POV. Is Prim as harmless as she seems? Is Madge really on their side? And President Snow has eyes everywhere... Read on!

Disclaimer: Do I look like Suzanne Collins to you? Do I? No? That's what I thought.

"Go home, Prim!" Katniss shouts again, but I don't. I would normally never disobey Katniss, but this close to the reaping; I can't help but feel afraid of every shadow. I fall asleep each night with my mother by my side. My dreams are filled with images of Effie Trinket shouting my name for the whole district to hear, and Haymitch, the horrid man who is our district's only victor and mentor, grabbing me shakily and shouting in my face, beer on his breath, "You will never make it in the arena! You will die! You will die!" I weep each night, thinking how Katniss took all the tesserae. The odds are not in her favor. I can't let her go this easily. Not with my nightmares as full of her name drawn as my own.

"No, Katniss! Wait!"

"No, Prim!" She turns around suddenly, and the dislike and anger in her eyes make me skid to a halt in the gray dust road. The expression only lasts a moment, though, before the usual love and comfort return, and she takes my small, smooth hands in her rough, larger ones.

"I-I must go, Prim. Don't worry. It's just like I always do. Just a walk." She says this for the purpose of the Peacekeepers, not me. I know as well as she that she's going hunting.

"Katniss, I-"

"Go, Prim! If I'm late later it's because I went to visit Gale." I know she means that she has something important to say to Gale, in the woods. I can't for the life of me figure out what it might be, since today is just like any other day. Besides the reaping tomorrow. But who am I to keep her from talking to Gale?

"I-okay, Katniss," I say dejectedly, trudging home miserably but careful not to grind the dust into my shoes. I need to make these last as long as possible ever since my last pair fell down a rabbit hole when I was walking back from the lake in bare feet.

Katniss looks shocked for a moment when I agree so easily, but soon runs off again. She can't waste any time getting to her precious Gale.

"Hey, Prim!" It's Madge, the mayor's daughter. She's dressed nicely, as usual. When I met her, I thought she would be spoiled and rude because of her wealth and upbringing, but I soon found that she was very kind. We are good friends now. "Are you nervous for the reaping? You'll be entered this year, won't you?"

I nod slowly, picking up my pace ever so slightly. I don't want to be rude, but I really don't want to talk about the reaping right now.

"Where's Katniss?"

"Taking a walk," I reply monotonously, like I was taught. Even at home, to my mother, I refer Katniss's hunting trips as "walks." Katniss drilled it into me when I was still very young. She loves me more than anyone, but she's still very protective of my mother and me. Annoyingly so, sometimes. Like today.

"Oh?" Madge cocked her head at me innocently, and I swallowed hard. She didn't believe me. "Not hunting?"

"Shh!" I say frantically, looking around wildly. "Peacekeepers!"

"So it's true," Madge replies, hands on her hips.

"No," I say quickly. But it's too late.

"Well, anyways, thanks-I mean, bye Prim." And with that, she skips off and is gone. I stare after her for a while, appalled. Did I really just give Katniss away? No, Madge already knew. But you confirmed it, a cruel voice says in my head. I fight the urge to break down in tears and run back home. She's the mayor's daughter, she could tell him anything. And the mayor could tell the Peacekeepers, and Katniss could get arrested-or worse, the mayor could tell President Snow...

"Oh, Prim," I say to myself, on the verge of tears. "You're such a jabberjay."

Sorry for shortness. I technically wrote this in Notes on my iPod, so it looked longer... Whatever. I guess we can't all be J.K. Rowling and write thousand-page stories. Hope you liked!


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